Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach, or any of the characters used in this fic. They all belong to Tite Kubo. I only own any of my original characters that I choose to include, as well as any of my own original plot ideas.
Can't Stop The Rain
A/N: Alternate events following, and mildly detailing, the battle on Sokyoku Hill.
Side by side they stood, small stone pillars marking the graves, old and new. The first, a fond memory, incense burning as an offering, a sign of respect. The second was trapped in freshly dug soil, a few days having passed since its placement. For this one, a lone jasmine laid bare against the earth, a reminder.
Two promises, and only one to be kept.
It had been a child he'd found that day, not an infant, wailing to be fed. A self-sufficient little girl, proud and beautiful like the dragons of human legend. Fierce like one, as well. He'd taken her under his wing, to protect her, raise her as a member of his clan, one promise he'd kept and broken.
Protect. What did it truly mean to him? To shield one until they were able to fly, or forever? The latter rang true to his heart. And yet, it wounded him.
He'd stood on the wayside, crossing the road only to impede the progress of the ones who would defy the law, the promise made to his parents' graves. He had had his way, putting one down for a time, a friend and colleague, and stopping the other all together.
They had lived, both his lieutenant and the ryoka boy. But she had died, and her assailants had escaped.
He did not fault the defected captains for their treachery, for her death. No, it was his burden to bear, a weight that would linger upon his heart until the end of his days.
The promise to his parents had been kept, as he had upheld the law. But that to his sweet wife, his Hisana, had died.
And her blood was on his hands alone.